Gay Pride Day, 2012

Taken from the DMZGH Teachings page, some quotes about embracing diversity …

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From a public statement by Myogen Steve Stucky and Ryushin Paul Haller, then co-abbots of San Francisco Zen Center:

Our bodhisattva vow is to include all beings, and our expression of this vow means to go beyond inherited cultural patterns. We recognize that biases inherent in American culture are a karmic legacy that needs to be acknowledged and overcome if we are to become a sangha that truly reflects the boundless wisdom and compassion of all buddhas.

‎I don’t see any particular problems in working with others. Just go ahead. Push yourself harder. Sometimes you find that you don’t like someone that you are trying to work with. But if you look behind their facade, you see that the person is, in fact, quite lovable. They do possess the primordial dot.

When you first talk to them, you might find them completely off-putting and irritating. You wouldn’t touch them with a ten-foot pole. But gradually, your pole becomes shorter. You begin to do a double-take. You might even begin to like them. The point here is that you have to push harder, and then there’s no problem at all. You might be working with someone who is completely untrustworthy, but that doesn’t matter. Trust begins with trusting in yourself, your dot, and your commitment.

You have to work hard to help others, directly, without even wearing rubber gloves to clean up their vomit. You’re not like an employer who is interviewing potential employees to decide which ones to hire. We are going to help others, regardless of their workability.

I believe an important distinction can be made between religion and spirituality. Religion I take to be concerned with faith in the claims to salvation of one faith tradition or another. Spirituality I take to be concerned with qualities of the human spirit, love and compassion, patience, tolerance, forgiveness, contentment, a sense of responsibility, and a sense of harmony, that bring happiness both to self and others.

Dedication: In spirit, members of the sangha of Desert Mirror Zendo & Guest House are carrying a giant, beautiful rainbow banner and marching in the Gay Pride parade in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Maybe next year we can actually be there, live and in the flesh, expressing our love for and solidarity with all beings. May it be so.